Visual output from computers and other electronic devices has historically been presented on flat screens. Even as cathode ray tube (CRT) monitors gave way to liquid crystal displays (LCDs) over the last few years, the screens have remained flat. User interaction with such flat screens was originally enabled at least primarily by way of the keyboard, which derived from the pre-existing typewriter. In the 1970s and 1980s, graphical user interface (GUI) technologies enabled mice and other pointer-type devices to be used for input.
When a pointer-type device is utilized for input, a user manipulates the device to move a pointer around a display screen. Typically, functionality is activated with the device by clicking on a given screen position, such as on an icon or a button. With the increased popularity of user interfaces that involve pointing and clicking, touch screen interfaces were developed. With a touch screen, a user may activate functionality by physically touching and/or pressing on a given screen position. However, such touch screens were still flat.
Recently, however, some curved displays have been created. For example, spherical displays of one kind or another have been developed. These spherical displays are especially employed in promotional environments or for the display of three-dimensional (3D) data. Spherical displays can offer an unobstructed 360° field-of-view to multiple users. This enables viewers to explore different perspectives of the displayed data by physically moving around the display.
Viewers can use the spherical nature of the display, their physical body position and orientation, and additional cues from the surrounding environment to aid them in spatially finding and understanding the data that is being displayed on a spherical surface. The characteristics of a display in a spherical form factor can afford interesting usage scenarios that go beyond what is possible with the more prevalent flat displays. Spherical displays also offer diverse interaction challenges. Unfortunately, conventional user interface (UI) technologies are rooted in traditional flat displays. As a result, conventional UI technologies fail to take advantage of the interesting usage scenarios and fail to address the diverse interaction challenges of curved displays.